2008 serial blasts case: Gujarat HC upholds death sentences of 38 convicts, life term of 11

Ahmedabad: The Gujarat High Court on Tuesday upheld the convictions and sentences awarded by a special court in the 2008 Ahmedabad serial bomb blasts case, confirming death penalty for 38 convicts and life imprisonment for 11 others, rejecting appeals against the sentences.

A Division Bench of Justice Alpesh Y Kogje and Justice Samir J Dave affirmed the special court’s February 2022 judgment, which had convicted 49 people for their roles in one of India’s deadliest terror attacks.

Under the existing laws, every death sentence awarded by a trial court requires confirmation by the High Court before it can be carried out.

The High Court also directed that the families of the 56 people killed in the serial blasts be paid compensation of Rs 10 lakh each.

It further ordered compensation of Rs one lakh each for more than 200 people who were injured in the attacks, according to details of the judgment released after the verdict.

The case relates to the coordinated bomb attacks carried out across Ahmedabad on the evening of July 26, 2008, when 21 explosions occurred within about 70 minutes at buses, public places and two hospitals where victims of earlier blasts had been taken for treatment.

The attacks claimed 56 lives and left more than 200 people injured, triggering one of the country’s largest terrorism investigations. Following an extensive investigation, police registered 35 FIRs and filed hundreds of charge sheets.

The trial involved more than 1,100 witnesses and thousands of documentary and material exhibits before the special court delivered its verdict in February 2022, convicting 49 accused while acquitting 28 others.

Of those convicted, 38 were sentenced to death and 11 were awarded imprisonment for the remainder of their natural lives.

After the special court pronounced the sentences, all convicted persons challenged the verdict before the Gujarat High Court, while the state government sought confirmation of the death sentences.

The High Court heard the matter over an extended period before reserving and subsequently delivering its judgment on Tuesday.

The High Court’s decision means convictions and sentences awarded by the special court remain in force. The convicts retain the legal right to challenge the High Court’s judgment before the Supreme Court.

IANS